According to data published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were over 436,600 pharmacy technicians working in the U.S. as of May 2021. Pharmacy technicians are employed in various settings, including health and personal care stores, hospitals, food and general merchandise stores with pharmacy services, and other businesses involved in the distribution of pharmaceutical products. Pharmacy technicians typically earn salaries that are lower than what average workers in most other occupations earn. As of May 2021, the BLS estimated the national mean wage for pharmacy technicians at $37,970 per year.  Pharmacy technician pay varies considerably from region to region. May 2021 data from the BLS reveals the following about pharmacy technician pay in the top 20 metropolitan areas in the United States:

Pharmacy Technician Pay in the Top 20 Metropolitan Areas

	Metropolitan Area		# Employed	Mean Annual Wage
1	New York-Newark-Jersey City		21,060	$39,970
2	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim		13,770	$48,010
3	Chicago-Naperville-Elgin		16,760	$38,100
4	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington		9,930	$38,880
5	Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land		8,650	$39,990
6	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria		5,570	$40,910
7	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington		10,480	$37,020
8	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach		9,250	$37,470
9	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta		7,110	$35,390
10	Boston-Cambridge-Newton		6,440	$41,430
11	Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler		7,600	$39,350
12	San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley		4,280	$59,340
13	Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario		3,870	$46,580
14	Detroit-Warren-Dearborn		6,740	$36,650
15	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue		4,290	$48,850
16	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington		4,510	$44,150
17	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad		3,230	$48,960
18	Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater		5,720	$35,710
19	Denver-Aurora-Lakewood		3,440	$41,840
20	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson		3,490	$37,450
	National		436,630	$37,970

Report Period:  May 2021
Top 20 U.S. Metro areas from the 2020 Census
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Occupational Statistics
Data extracted on October 5, 2022